The following compares the current state of Arms Warriors to Fire Mages using the latest SimulationCraft data for end-game PvE in World of Warcraft The War Within patch 11.0.2.
Comparison
Category
Winner
Arms Warrior
+10.97%
When simulating boss fight encounters, Arms Warriors averaged 10.97% more DPS than Fire Mages (+166K DPS).
Arms Warrior
+47.32%
When simulating AoE DPS, Arms Warriors averaged 47.32% more DPS than Fire Mages (+582K DPS).
Arms Warrior
+66.08%
Arms Warriors have higher spike damage potential, achieving +4.7M more DPS than Fire Mages.
Spike damage is the peak DPS achieved in any given moment and is not sustained DPS.
Arms Warrior
+0.92%
When upgrading the gear for both specs by +44 ilvl, Arms Warrior DPS improved the most, +0.92% more than Fire Mage. In total, Arms Warriors DPS increased by 67.12% and Fire Mages by 66.2%.
Fire Mage
+23.45%
+ Movement and latency lowered the DPS by 4.96% for Fire Mages.
+ Movement and latency lowered the DPS by 28.41% for Arms Warriors.
When introducing occasional movement and real-world latency, Fire Mages performed better, as Arms Warriors suffered a +23.45% DPS loss.
Fire Mage
When evaluating abilities used during boss encounters, Fire Mages had fewer damaging abilities in total, indicating a potentially less complex rotation.
The comparisons above highlight some of the key differences between Arms Warrior and Fire Mage in the current meta, which can hopefully help you determine which spec to play or group up with.
Arms Warrior
Fire Mage